Medical Waste: Does it Play a Major Role in Spreading Infectious Diseases?
4/29/2022
The onset of the pandemic, which started three years ago, brought a significant weight on our Health system. It brought pressure and tested the existing human resources, structures, and policies regarding our health standards.
This situation may also lead us to one question, Do Medical Waste Play a Major Role in Spreading Infectious Diseases? What are the steps taken to ensure proper waste disposal?
Disposal of Healthcare facilities and hospital waste material follows a strict standard and well-defined procedures. It includes sorting and disposing of. These ways of getting rid of hospital waste were studied and legislated by authorities.
Sorting of Hospital Waste Materials
Waste materials from health facilities vary widely. Sorting is an essential step in discarding hospital waste products because it determines the kind of disposal system that will be applied to a particular waste product.
Before disposal, waste materials are sorted by well-trained, knowledgeable, and fully geared staff to ensure quality and proper discharge. The major sorting category usually employed are:
● Controlled substances (e.g., narcotics)
● antineoplastic (cytotoxic-anti-cancer)
● Pharmaceuticals and other materials which can still be used
● Expired or unwanted pharmaceuticals
● Hazardous or potentially hazardous non-pharmaceutical materials
● Recyclable material
Safe Disposal of Hospital Waste Products
After thorough separation of items, the following steps of disposal are carried out
● Return to donor or manufacturer
● Landfill
● Waste immobilization: encapsulation
● Waste immobilization: inertization
● Sewer
● Burning in open containers
● Medium temperature incineration
● Novel high-temperature incineration
● Chemical decomposition
Final Words
Some existing policies and guidelines help hospitals dispose of their waste properly. These ensure that medical waste products do not contribute to infectious diseases.
Additional factors that will help prevent any potential hazard from Medical waste include the uncompromised implementation and adherence exerted by every hospital and healthcare facility at their end.
This situation may also lead us to one question, Do Medical Waste Play a Major Role in Spreading Infectious Diseases? What are the steps taken to ensure proper waste disposal?
Disposal of Healthcare facilities and hospital waste material follows a strict standard and well-defined procedures. It includes sorting and disposing of. These ways of getting rid of hospital waste were studied and legislated by authorities.
Sorting of Hospital Waste Materials
Waste materials from health facilities vary widely. Sorting is an essential step in discarding hospital waste products because it determines the kind of disposal system that will be applied to a particular waste product.
Before disposal, waste materials are sorted by well-trained, knowledgeable, and fully geared staff to ensure quality and proper discharge. The major sorting category usually employed are:
● Controlled substances (e.g., narcotics)
● antineoplastic (cytotoxic-anti-cancer)
● Pharmaceuticals and other materials which can still be used
● Expired or unwanted pharmaceuticals
● Hazardous or potentially hazardous non-pharmaceutical materials
● Recyclable material
Safe Disposal of Hospital Waste Products
After thorough separation of items, the following steps of disposal are carried out
● Return to donor or manufacturer
● Landfill
● Waste immobilization: encapsulation
● Waste immobilization: inertization
● Sewer
● Burning in open containers
● Medium temperature incineration
● Novel high-temperature incineration
● Chemical decomposition
Final Words
Some existing policies and guidelines help hospitals dispose of their waste properly. These ensure that medical waste products do not contribute to infectious diseases.
Additional factors that will help prevent any potential hazard from Medical waste include the uncompromised implementation and adherence exerted by every hospital and healthcare facility at their end.